Matchday 12 - A Continent Mourns

Mexico 0 - Uruguay 1 (Suarez 43)
France 1 (Malouda 70) - South Africa 2 (Khumalo 20, Mphela 37)
Nigeria 2 (Uche 12, Ayegbeni 69p) - South Korea 2 (Lee 38, Park 49)
Greece 0 - Argentina 2 (Demichelis 77, Palermo 89)

Matchday 12 saw two more African nations knocked out of the World Cup. Despite a 2-1 win over France, Uruguay could only beat Mexico 1-0, meaning those two countries advanced from Group A. In Group B, South Korea's 2-2 draw with Nigeria was enough to see it through to the last 16, following Argentina's 2-0 win over Greece.

The match between Mexico and Uruguay was much more exciting than many pundits would have predicted given that both sides could advance to the next round on the back of a draw. Uruguay played in a defensive style (although they did have 3 strikers) allowing Mexico a lot of the ball, which they used to their advantage with some good attacking play. However, they could not crack the tough Uruguayan defence, and warning bells would have been sounding on the Mexican bench when Luis Suarez gave the South Americans the lead just before half time finishing off a superb counter-attacking move. At the time South Africa were leading France 2-0 and were 3/5th's of the way to overturning the spread in goal difference in order to qualify. However, Mexico need not have worried as the goal all but sealed Uruguay's top spot in the group and ended any real interest they had in attacking. They were happy to sit back and let Mexico play with the ball, their defence more than capable of holding Mexico out in the second half. Despite the loss, Mexico still advanced to the next round with a 2-1 win for South Africa over France seeing Mexico advance on goal difference. In the process South Africa became the first host nation to be eliminated before the group stage, and France went out in disgrace, although they did at least score a goal unlike in the 2002 tournament.

Argentina ensured they advanced from Group B with a perfect record of 3 wins from 3 games after they defeated a stubborn Greece 2-0 in their final group match. This match was horrific to watch, mostly due to the horribly boring defensive tactics of Greece who at times were playing 6 or 7 men at the back! When stars like Lionel Messi did get on the ball in midfield they would cynically foul them. In the end it took Argentina almost 80 minutes to break down the Greek wall, Martin Demichelis finally doing the job from an Argentine corner. Martin Palermo sealed the points in the last minute of normal time following up a Messi shot that was saved by the Greek goaltender. The Argentineans displayed good patience in countering the ultra-defensive Greek tactics, especially with most of their first string players out. They will now take on Mexico in the second round in a repeat of the round of 16 match up that went to extra time in 2006. This result opened up the door for Nigeria to advance but they could only manage a 2-2 draw with South Korea after taking an early lead. The Koreans responded well, but Nigeria will be ruing some missed chances late in the game from the likes of Obafemi Martins and Yakubu which could (or should!) have seen the Africans qualify for the next round. Instead South Korea will do so in their place.

Second Round Matches - Argentina ($1.25) v Mexico ($4.30), Uruguay ($1.50) v South Korea ($2.80)

What We Learned - That Nigeria would pay in the end for their slip up against Greece. While Argentina and South Korea both beat the Greeks 2-0, the Nigerians suffered a 2-1 loss after taking the lead and being reduced to 10 men. A win in that game would have probably seen the Nigerians get through instead of the Koreans.

The Falcon's Spud Of The Day - Georgios Karagounis (Greece) - One of the most horrible displays I have seen on the football field for some time. Captain of one of the most cynical/defensive teams in the world, Karagounis barely touched the ball, and instead spent the entire first half complaining to the referee about EVERY SINGLE DECISION!! Even the most blatant foul by the Greeks (and there were many) was questioned. Thankfully the muppet was subbed off at half time so we didn't have to put up with him for the full 90 minutes and he won't be back for the knockout stages.

Tonight's Games - An evening of ball-bursting games with all 8 teams playing capable of qualifying for the next round. In Group C England should get the win it needs to advance when it takes on Slovenia, while the USA look to top the group with a win over Algeria - I think they can. Group D sees the hopes of an Australian miracle on the line. While I expect Germany to beat Ghana comfortably, I can't see the Aussies getting over Serbia with qualification also on the line for the Serbs. A draw is the likely result.

Suggested Investment - With qualification on the line I expect big performances from Germany and England tonight, and both should win. Coupling them up in a multi is the best way to go.

Prices courtesy of Betfair.